Matt Berry Has Once Again Done Something We Enjoy

For months now, this website has been bringing you the mildly obsessive Matt Berry coverage we felt the world was sorely lacking. Then today, just as we hit our one-year pandemiversary, the guy goes ahead and announces the release of his upcoming album, The Blue Elephant, as if he knew we needed this pick-me-up. Set for release on May 14, the album is a psychedelic venture that he was already talking about while promoting his last album Phantom Birds in the fall of 2020. Because he! Never! Stops! Creating! Along with the announcement comes the release of the single “Aboard,� a track that evokes the gradual end of our long quarantine winter. I’d say it’s the perfect soundtrack for an afternoon stroll on the first day of the year when being outside doesn’t physically hurt. The revelation of the album’s cover art also leaves a lot to unpack, featuring a painting of Joseph Merrick, also known as the Elephant Man, in a blue suit. Berry’s recently canceled but very good series Year of the Rabbit featured a fictionalized version of Merrick as one of its most delightful characters, making us wonder if this is perhaps an homage to that unfinished work. It’s also unclear whether Berry painted it himself, but it wouldn’t be the first time he’s painted his own cover art. So, we finally have something to look forward to — well, this and the vaccine, I guess.